June - July, 2008
Grounds Dampened
But Not Comm-Unity Spirits
Move Forward, Not Out
Allied Festival a Success
 Although
the skies were gray and threatening, the spirits were high as the 2008
Annual Move Forward Not Out Festival began at noon on Saturday June
7th.
With resource tables filled with information, the
aroma of grilling food filling the air, and the sounds of music,
laughter of children and celebration, Belmar Park was set for a day of
enjoyment and Comm-Unity.
By mid-afternoon the skies would open and soak the ground and festival
goers with a cold heavy rain and high winds. This did not deter the
senseof pride and concern for community.
Community leader Freddie Clark took the mic and along
with other leaders assured the movement of festival goers quickly out
of danger from the severe weather. The spirit of working together
could not be understated. Despite the weather, the festival was a
success!
Moving Forward:
Allied Task Force Sets Employment Recommendations
The Allied Area Comprehensive Neighborhood Revitalization Strategy
recommendations from November 2007, identified a need for improved
economic development for the Allied neighborhood. The report
highlighted the need to provide greater access to reliable jobs that
pay a living wage.
It recommended that the City work with other public and private
partners to help Allied residents overcome the major barriers to
stable employment. Initial strategies were outlined as follows:
- Cooperation with business to identify employment opportunities
- Promote pre-employment, training and job coaching opportunities
- Ensure access to affordable stable quality childcare
- Collaboration with Madison Schools in relation to their role in
childcare and parenting, training and support
- Improve access from the neighborhood to employment and support centers
- Building redevelopment to be a source of employment for neighborhood
- Commercial/retail development in the Madison Plaza to support
neighborhood-serving small businesses and employment opportunities.
In 2005 the Allied Area Task Force was created to make recommendations
to the Mayor and Common Council regarding a focused set of strategies
to strengthen the Allied area neighborhood. Shortly after forming, the
Task Force voted on the top three areas of concentration for in-depth
study and discussion. These three areas were
-
Housing
-
Safety
-
Employment. In late 2007, the Task Force appointed a subcommittee to
study the issue of employment and make recommendations to improve the
quality of life in the Allied neighborhood.
This report is a summary of the subcommittees work with primary
emphasis on recommendations that will help strengthen employment
efforts in the Allied neighborhood leading to economic
self-sufficiency and neighborhood stability.
Barriers to Employment
The Allied neighborhood has a disproportionate number of people who
have been chronically unemployed and underemployed, and face a number
of barriers to employment. There is a need to recognize that
individuals' employability will fall on a continuum of need, some of
which will require extensive support to move people into higher level
of employability.
Any employment model needs to address ways to meet this continuum.
Individuals' barriers to employment vary from minor to substantial
from singular to multiple and from short term to chronic.
SubCommittee Recommendations
Create an Allied Employment Coalition that includes the Allied
Employment Partnership, START, ECI and other employment agencies
operating in Allied now and in the future, that functions as a
cohesive and seamless continuum of services that clearly delineates
each partner's role and capacity, and includes all direct employment
functions in the neighborhood.
- Continue or expand City, County and private financial support for
Allied employment and employment-related programs.
- Create Job Opportunities in Allied within the City's Redevelopment
Effort
- Develop New Public-Private Partnerships
Allied Task Force Employment Subcommittee Report (May 21, 2008).
Downloadable, printable .pdf file.
CAC Starts New
Financial Case
Management Program for Allied Residents
by Anneke Mohr,
Building Bridges Caseworker
Community Action Coalition for South Central WI, Inc.
(CAC) has launched a new Financial Literacy Case Management Program
called Building Bridges to work with people in the Allied Drive area
to gain control of their finances. We will also assist in finding
housing for those who will be displaced by the redevelopment project.
We are able to work with people to develop budgets and money
management skills, repair credit, mediate with landlords on past due
rent, provide referrals to other community resources, and asses
eligibility for the new housing units or home ownership opportunities.
With the support of United Way of Dane County, CAC has partnered with
the City of Madison, Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development
Authority (WHEDA), Madison Gas and Electric (MG&E), the Financial
Education Center (FEC) and Wisconsin Women’s Business Initiative (WWBIC)
to help residents take it a step further so that once bills are
current, future bills can be controlled by reducing utility and other
costs, increasing income, and looking at the option of home ownership.
Anneke Mohr, CAC’s Building Bridges Program Caseworker, will be
working with Allied residents over the summer to get the program off
the ground. The first focus of Building Bridges will be to work with
residents of the buildings set for demolition.
As time goes on, CAC hopes to continue working with other residents in
the area. Joanne Morton is CAC’s new Coordinator of Asset Development
and she will be available to provide more in depth training in
financial literacy.
If you would like more information on money management
or would like to learn more about the Building Bridges program through
CAC, please stop by the MAP office at 4633 A Verona Rd (behind
Walgreens) or call Anneke Mohr at 608-246-4730 x233. Se habla espanol!
The Spray Park is Back! by
Jessica Strong,
Parks AASPIRE Intern
A popular hangout spot last summer among community
members in the Madison area, the City of Madison’s first spray park is
back for another summer of wet and wild fun! As a way to revitalize
the Cypress/Magnolia neighborhood, the spray park’s success last
summer proved to be a stepping stone in bringing community members and
city officials together in order to push criminal activity out of the
neighborhood.
Because the facility is free and located in an area
with an abundance of families, the spray park has also functioned as
an alternative to the Goodman Pool. Although, there are scholarships
available to families, safe transportation to the pool remains an
issue. Many of the children who reside in this neighborhood may not
have a safe way to get to the pool due to Park Street’s constant
traffic flow. This summer, patrons will notice two new
features that have been added to the park; last spring, the lively
artwork of Melanie Kehoss was welded on to the fences that border the
park. The artwork titled “1-2-3 Go!” features brightly orange
silhouettes of children and families in various forms of play. Kehoss
was selected by the Madison Arts Commission to head the project.
Also enhancing the beauty of the park is the
blossoming rain garden located in the southwest corner of the spray
park. According to City of Madison Landscape Architect Bill Bauer, the
success of the rain garden is due to the “heavy winter, and frequent
spring rains [along] with dozens of volunteer hours spent weeding and
mulching.” This summer, stop by the Spray Park to get a glimpse of the
beautiful artwork, admire the flourishing garden, and of course to
cool off. Cypress SprayPark
902 Magnolia Lane
Daily hours 11:00a.m.-7:00p.m.,
Free Admission |
